With the help of a three-hitter by pitcher Derek Sivec, Fort Mill Post 43 beat Union Post 22 to clinch the League V title and finish the regular season 11-2.

Post 43 scattered a dozen hits in their only game of the week last week on the way to the 9-2 win. Fort Mill now readies itself to enter the playoffs against Spartanburg.

“We play in one of the most competitive leagues in the state and to be League V champions is a testament to how hard our players and coaching staff worked all season,” said Post 43 head coach Tom Skula. “Getting the one seed and having home field is an enormous advantage for us.”

Fort Mill is guaranteed two home games during the best of five first round playoff series.

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“I am very excited to see how we use this momentum into the first round,” Skula said.

“We have been playing with 10 to 11 guys the last week and half which has been tough. Guys have been playing out of position, which was a great thing to continue to win and see guys at different positions as a coaching staff. We should finally have our full team when it counts the most beginning next week.”

Against Union, Post 43 scored in the top of the first with the help of an RBI single from Justin Kerosetz to drive in Daniel Gueldner, who went 2-5 with a double and two RBIs himself.

Union came back in the bottom of the inning to take a 2-1 lead as Sivec struggled in the first inning, allowing two of the three hits he gave up. However, the Post 43 offense had his back and scored runs in five of the next six innings.

In the third inning, Fort Mill really opened the game up with a two-run double by Greg Izzo to score both Joey Tepper and Alex Stennett. Gueldner would have an RBI double in the fourth and James Mulvaney would put the game out of reach for Post 43 in the fifth with a two-run single. Mulvaney also doubled in a run in the seventh as he went 3-4 on the evening with three RBI.

Sivec would throw a complete game in the win, giving up just one earned run and walking one while striking out nine Union batters.

“Derek pitched a heck of a game for us,” he said. “He kept the Union guys off balance all night long.”